Exploring the Tribute Book of Sir Walter Spencer Stanhope 

In order to create an exhibition as extensive and fascinating as Cannon Hall: The Story of a House and its Family, a tremendous amount of research has to be carried out in the planning stages. Having the wonderful resources available at Barnsley Archives and Local Studies helps to make this possible.        

Here, Paul Stebbing, former Barnsley Archives & Local Studies Manager, examines a tribute book compiled in honour of one of Barnsley’s leading men and resident of Cannon Hall, Walter Spencer-Stanhope 

Those researching the Spencer-Stanhope family of Cannon Hall have been able to use and enjoy access to the family’s muniments held by Barnsley Archives and Local Studies since the collection was transferred from Sheffield Archives over a decade ago. The extensive collection of records, comprised of over 200 boxes and dating back to the 15^th century, detail the family, their Cannon Hall Estate and other landholdings across the country. 

Despite holding the extensive muniments, new records relating to the family and their estates continue to come to light. In the last couple of years, the team at Barnsley Archives were delighted to receive a leather-bound gold-leaf tribute book to the late Sir Walter Spencer Stanhope (known to most as Colonel Stanhope), kindly purchased by the Friends of Barnsley Archives. It contains almost 50 pages of tributes to Sir Walter which had featured in newspapers and publications across Yorkshire. There is no indication as to who compiled the tribute book, but it is a treasure trove for anybody wanting to find out more about Sir Walter. Many of the tributes contain huge amounts of biographical information and anecdotes. 

To find out more, visit Exploring the Tribute to Sir Walter Spencer Stanhope where further blogs relating to the Spencer Stanhope family can be found, including: